I'm trying to get back into playing shape, and I've spent most of the time on the elliptical. With treadmills and running outside, I've had a slight bit of pain in my lower legs (inner side of the tibia, front side of my leg). I have a shin sleeve and that helps a bit, but I was wondering if there's anything I can do to make sure it doesn't get worse. Obviously, I know I can stretch more (which I'm doing now), and then even more general things such as making sure I'm hydrated. Any other thoughts? Thanks in advance.
P.S., if the answer is just stretching more, could you provide some specific stretches or muscles I'm shooting for. Thanks!
Tape the front of the legs in a cris-cross diagonal pattern before events it helps lesson the pain. What kind of surface do you train and play on? Are you sure what you have are shin splints and not stress fractures? Try this exercise when you wake up. Do it daily easily done in bed while still half asleep . Be face down, feet extended so toes catch end of bed mattress. pull up 10 times. Adjust feet several degrees to left of center and repeat. Adjust feet several degrees to right of center and repeat. ------------------ However, on "shin splints" I have found the cure (and prevention) not to be >in the stretching, but the strengthening. I also suggest that to stretch the >shin area, one must point the foot and toe. When the foot is brought back >where the toes are closer to the shin, this is promoting a constricting >action (there is a medical term that I can't recall) of the main muscle > >My best results have come when the foot is pulled back (using the shin >muscle group) or by squeezing the toes under the foot, etc. Raising the foot >stretching the calf, many athletes and coaches neglect to stretch the shins
Prior to exercising, it is important to learn how to stretch your shins to avoid causing injury to yourself. Shin stretching exercises are effective for loosening the shins, which improves the body’s ability to point the toes. These exercises are also effective in relieving any tightness you may feel in the shin area. By using shin stretches before performing exercises like such as running or jugging, you will minimize the amount of discomfort you feel during the workout. To stretch your shins, one of the most effective stretches is the seated shin stretch. To do the seated shin stretch you will need to find a flat area on the floor or ground that is large enough for you to sit on. To perform this stretch you need to sit with your legs folded underneath you, calves to the back of your thighs. Your toes need to be pointed straight behind you, parallel to the ground, as you shift your weight to one side of your body and slightly life the knee that is under the least weight. Hold this position for approximately 30 seconds and repeat on the other leg. Another simple stretch you can use to stretch your shins can be done just about anywhere and at anytime. You can do this stretch while sitting, standing, or laying down. To do this stretch you will need to keep your leg straight and then point the toes down as far as possible. Hold this stretch for approximately 30 seconds and repeat on the second leg. Although taking the time to stretch your shins may seem to be a very simple step, it is an important step because without taking the time to stretch your shins you can cause injury to the muscle group in the area. Plus, if you do not take the time to stretch your shins you will experience extreme discomfort during exercising because the body is not accustom to using that muscle group in that way.
Thanks ya'll. I appreciate the information. Usually running around the neighborhood on concrete, but I've started going to parks which are either grass or packed dirt. The only fields near me are natural grass. I'm not positive, but sound like something I need to look into... I assumed not stress fractures because it's not debilitating, just a little uncomfortable.
Can you describe what your activity patterns were like about 4 weeks before the shin splints occurred? Doctors seem to think nowadays that shin splits are an overuse injury or a sudden increase in activity. Also as with other injuries they think it comes from muscular imbalances, weak ankles or calves in this case. Getting correct footwear is a key component of this too. Correct, as in, fits the way your run and features of your feet.
Four weeks before I was starting to jog consistently for the first time in quite some time. It's probably a combination of all factors (not stretching enough, the shoes I had when I started about four or five weeks ago, running on concrete). I got new shoes not long after I started up. It's not that it's bad, it's that I don't want to make it any worse.
Get a lacrosse ball, baseball, or softball (that is actually hard) and roll out the calves, and anterior tibialis. Then do some stretching to the front of the shins and calves (straight knee) and achilles (bent knee). Following this, do calve raises, and toe raises. Be creative about adding resistance to the toe raises. Seated with a band works great. At some gyms they have machines. Seated calf raises are great too because they work the soleus as opposed the to the gastroc. The gastroc is a faster twitch muscle and the soleus is a slow twitch muscle which provides more in the realm of stability and endurance. Barefoot training is going to help. Sand training will take a lot of impact off of your shin splints until you can gradually work back into hard ground training. If you are diligent with the rolling out, things should clear up fast really quickly.
If there is one main rehabilitation exercise you should focus, it would be standing toe raises. Get a barbell with some weight, and do toe raises on a flat surface. Stretching of your tibialis anterior is also very key. I wouldn't recommend doing a lot of stretching on the backside, as in soleus or gastrocneimus. I don't want to go through the "mechanism" of how shin splints develop, but the cliff note version is the posterior part of your lower leg is over stretched, and puts all the weight of your body when you run on the front part of your lower leg. So we want to stretch the front side, and strengthen the back side. Hope this makes sense!
Everything has come up before. There was a guy who writes a coach book for beginning youth players. He got it published because of the presentation in the cover it was cute. All the information in the book was mostly wrong. He made some games in it and gave them cute names. One was a common sense one that was right. He thought he made up the name of the drill. I told him I used that name for a drill for helping to teach attacking players how to beat players since 1969, and I stole it back then from another coach.
If the pain is caused by the calf being too tight and pulling away from the bone exposing sensitive nerve endings, then the solution is to stretch the calf. This is the stretch I use to prevent that condition: http://www.exrx.net/Stretches/Gastrocnemius/FloorBoard.html As you can see from the varied posts there are different kinds of "shin splints" with different solutions. I used to have this problem occassionally when I did a lot of middle distance running. Now I am doing a lot of acceleration (and no distance running) which stretches the calf so I don't get the problem.
As for running and playing on concrete: My brother was crippled at 35 (as in no more sports or even jogging) while I am still playing soccer at 60. My brother played tennis professionally and basketball recreationally. Hard surfaces of course. When he was coaching, as many as 10 hours a day on them. I played soccer and ran on grass surfaces along roads instead of on paved surfaces whenever possible. Shin splints are only the immediate symptom from running on hard surfaces. Its very bad news in the long term. Especially if you are not wearing shoes designed for running on hard surfaces.